Eye on the customer: breaking away from the inside-out mindset

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to plot out pathways for organizations to implement a customer focus. These pathways are outlined with the help of illustrative examples. A well-defined customer focus is vital for organizations to ensure that they are positioned to be in line with the customers’ actual needs. Design/methodology/approach: This is a conceptual paper where the argumentation is built on previous research findings, the authors’ reflections and the use of illustrative case examples of companies managing to instill a customer focus. Findings: This paper builds a framework of potential pathways toward a customer focus by considering four strategic questions related to competition, products, insights and metrics. Practical implications: This paper encourages managers to move beyond labeling themselves as customer-oriented and to actually implement a customer focus. This study puts forth a framework with strategic questions and principles designed to help with these endeavors. Originality/value: Many companies pay lip service to customer focus, and it is often merely part of the corporate jargon without any real connection to strategy, the business model or everyday practices. This paper addresses the issue further by highlighting the potential pathways through which an organization can achieve a customer focus.